You can buy bird feeders and seed for cardinals and chickadees at specialty wild bird stores. Urban Nature Store sells both at ten Ontario stores and online across Canada, with separate cardinal and chickadee collections for feeders and food. A single hopper feeder filled with a mixed blend such as Red Carpet Mix can serve both birds.
What Do Cardinals and Chickadees Each Need From a Feeder?
Cardinals and chickadees need different feeders because they are built differently. A Northern Cardinal is a heavier bird with a thick, cone-shaped beak that needs a flat, stable perch, while a Black-capped Chickadee is light enough to cling to small ports, mesh and suet cages.
|
Need |
Cardinals |
Chickadees |
|---|---|---|
|
Perch |
Wide, flat and stable |
Small perches or clinging points |
|
Feeder styles |
Platform, hopper, large tube feeders with trays or curved perches, cardinal-only feeders |
Tube, hopper, suet and mesh "clingers only" feeders |
|
Favourite foods |
Safflower, sunflower hearts, peanut halves, white millet |
Sunflower hearts, suet, peanuts, black oil sunflower |
|
Squirrels |
Safflower seed, which squirrels don't favour |
A squirrel-proof feeder isn't required but protects the seed |
Urban Nature Store's guides to the best feeder for attracting cardinals and the feeders that attract chickadees and nuthatches cover each bird in more depth.
Can One Feeder and One Seed Serve Both Cardinals and Chickadees?
Yes. Hopper feeders appear on Urban Nature Store's recommended feeder lists for both birds. Sunflower hearts are also on both birds' food lists.
Red Carpet Mix, from $14.95, is the store's blend for hopper and tub feeders and is described as especially popular with cardinals and chickadees, as well as warblers and finches. It combines black oil sunflower, sunflower hearts, safflower, peanut halves and grey-striped sunflower, and is bagged fresh in store.
For yards with squirrels, the Squirrel Buster Plus has six feeding ports and comes with a cardinal ring perch, and its weight-sensitive mechanism closes the ports when a squirrel climbs on while lighter birds keep feeding.
Where Can You Buy Feeders and Seed Just for Cardinals?
Urban Nature Store's cardinal feeders collection and cardinal food collection gather the feeders and seed chosen for cardinals. Safflower is the store's top seed pick for cardinals, and squirrels, grackles and sparrows don't favour it, so it also keeps those visitors down.
For a feeder only cardinals can use, the Unique Cardinal Feeder has a perch on a lever and spring system calibrated to a cardinal's weight, so lighter and heavier birds can't feed from it. It is made in Canada from polycarbonate and can hang from a hook or mount on a pole.
Where Can You Buy Feeders and Seed Just for Chickadees?
Urban Nature Store's chickadee feeders collection groups tube, suet and clinging feeders sized for small birds. The Songbird Essentials Clingers Only Bird Feeder is built for chickadees, titmice, nuthatches and goldfinches, holds about 3.5 to 4 cups of seed, and discourages starlings, grackles and pigeons.
For seed and suet, sunflower hearts, peanuts and suet cakes draw chickadees most reliably, and the chickadee food collection brings them together. A Squirrel Buster Mini is a small squirrel-proof option, factory set to close at 115 g so red and grey squirrels are shut out.
Can You Buy Cardinal and Chickadee Supplies In Store or Online?
Both. Urban Nature Store's ten Ontario stores, listed on the store locations page, carry cardinal and chickadee feeders and seed, and each product page shows stock at every store. The same products ship anywhere in Canada, with free shipping on orders over $125.
Seed bag size decides how you buy it. Red Carpet Mix ships in a 6 lb bag, while the 8, 25 and 50 lb bags are store pickup only, so larger amounts mean ordering online for pickup or buying in store.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do cardinals and chickadees visit feeders all year in Ontario?
Yes. Northern Cardinals don't migrate south, and Black-capped Chickadees stay in Ontario year-round, so both birds can be fed through every season, including winter.
Will a cardinal-only feeder also feed chickadees?
No. A weight-calibrated cardinal feeder such as the Unique Cardinal Feeder only opens to a bird of a cardinal's weight, so chickadees are too light to use it. Pair it with a second feeder, such as a tube or clingers-only feeder, if you want both birds.
Do cardinals and chickadees both eat peanuts?
Yes. Peanut halves are on the cardinal food list, and peanuts and peanut suet are among the foods that draw chickadees, so shelled peanuts or a mix with peanut halves can feed both.
